Elk Grove schools detail cuts in bus service

The Elk Grove Unified School District released a statement today outlining reductions in bus service that are resulting from cuts in state funding.

Here's the statement:

Changes to Transportation for Elk Grove Unified School District

The Elk Grove Unified School District faces a $40 million budget reduction from the state for the 2011-2012 school year. This follows three years of budget cuts totaling over $100 million. The current $40 million reduction will mean that the state will have reduced EGUSD's budget by more than 36 percent over four years. Unfortunately, as a result, our schools and programs will lose additional staff and services for the 2011-2012 school year.

These cuts include reducing our transportation services in 2011-2012 to offer only one way service for kindergarten and 7th through 12th grade general education students. The specific changes are:

Kindergarten

AM kindergarten students who live in eligible service areas may ride the bus to school, but parents will need to arrange for transportation home. They will need to obtain a morning pass to ride the bus that services all K-6 students.

PM kindergarten students who live in eligible service areas may ride the bus home from school, but parents but will need to arrange for transportation to school. They will need to obtain an afternoon pass to ride the bus that services all K-6 students.

7th through 12th Grade

Morning transportation will be eliminated for 7th through 12th graders.

7th through 12th graders who live in eligible service areas will be able to ride the bus home from school.

Parents will need to arrange for transportation to school.

One way passes will be available for 7th through 12th grade students who live in eligible service areas for the PM ride home only.

If you would like more information about EGUSD's budget cuts, please visit the EGUSD Budget watch webpage at www.egusd.net/budget/index.cfm. If you would like more information about EGUSD Transportation visit www.egusd.net/transpo/. If you have questions about the changes to transportation, please call the Transportation Department at (916) 686-7733.

URGENT! Let your voices be heard!!

Absolutely correct! The school district is eliminating all morning school bus transportation for 7-12 middle school and high school. That means several hundred of us will need to find a way to get our kids 20 miles to school at Kay Albiani and Pleasant Grove High School every day. Folsom High School and Folsom Middle School is closer to us. My understanding is that the Folsom Cordova USD provides transportation to their inter-district transfer students residing in the Anatolia subdivision that chose to go to Folsom High. Would they be willing to transport our kids if we get inter-district transfers. I'm sure FCUSD would love to have the A.D.A (average daily attendance funding). By eliminating the morning service will be quite costly for most of us not to mention what a burden. Most of us commute down Jackson Hwy to downtown or Scott Road to Folsom for work. Albiani and Pleasant Grove High is way off the beaten path for most of us. People....write your district board members and Superintendent! Their contact info is on the District website, www.egusd.net. Get loud! Make your voices heard! Let's reverse this!

Pass the word around to other parents

Please pass the message around to all parents. Many parents may be unaware and may not find out until it's too late to say anything. This really is an urgent matter and the District's decision needs to be reversed or it will truly ruin the educational quality of life for this community. Having a school that is 20 miles away (Murieta South) with no transportation is truly unacceptable. It does not just affect us. Other areas that feed into those schools are also 10-15 miles from the school such as Anatolia, and Wilton. The District does not understand how much money they will lose as a result of declining enrollment as parents choose to send their children to a more convenient school out of district. Please post comments on this board expressing your feelings about this discontinued service. Again, please contact the District's board members as well as the Superintendent expressing your concerns. their contact info is on the District's website. I just spoke with two parents (friends of ours) from the Anatolia area earlier that have already said they would be sending their kids to Folsom High should the District not reverse their decision. We will also.